450 Marlin Discontinued

[Sideswipe]

Well, it's sad to only the few levergun nuts like me eh?

Ammo was already limited to Hornady, Buffalo Bore, & Corbon.

In 2008 I was fortunate to get a 300# bear during the 1st Skagit Spring Bear drawing.  I got him at 30 paces w/the Hornady FTX 325 gr "gummy tip".  The boar didn't move from where I shot him w/the 1st round.  I put 2 rounds into him that ended up against the far shoulderblade.  Both bullets expanded a lot.

Last Dec I got a Whitetail doe at about 100 yds w/my 35 Rem w/FTX 200 gr bullets.  The bullet hit at the right height behind the shoulder but about 3" too far back.  After hitting the nearside rib, the bullet deflected & exited about 6" at the far side after denying me a liver supper.

Next June I am going to British Columbia for the 1st (& probably my last) guided black bear hunt.  I am concerned about the penetration ability of the FTX bullet on large bodied animals so I purchased 425 grain hard cast lead bullets (about $ 3/round!!!!!).  Your qualified comments would be appreciated.  I will let U know what happens next June.

[halflife65]

Too bad about the .450.  My neighbor has one and I've always like the gun.  If I can catch up to him I'll ask him what he uses.

I went hunting from an old boy that had moved up he from Louisiana and he used to hunt white tails with one.  I asked him if it was overkill and he told me it was because it was so brushy they used big slow-moving bullets.  The guy had never shot a deer when he wasn't in a treestand, though.

[CAMPMEAT]

I've got 2 450's. 1 lever and 1 Encore pistol. Are you saying they are no longer making the ammo ?

[MikeWalking]

Not too surprised. There are 45-70 loads that will do the same thing.  Wild West Guns in Anchorage makes the .457 Wild West Magnum, a belted case that some say Marlin stole to make the .450 Marlin.  The 1895 Marlins they start with to convert to .457 will still shoot 45-70.  (and .410) I wouldn't mind having one...

[Sideswipe]

Yeah MikeWalking, a 45-70 can be loaded up to 450 performance....I own both.  While I don't reload, I used to have a bear hunt'in buddy who was also into reloading for his 45-70's & I profited from him doing lots of stout loads for me at cost.  Having listened to several reloaders on the Marlin Owners Forum it seems that the factory loads for 45-70 are kept pretty mild as there are a lot of old guns out there (like the Springfield Trapdoor) that cannot handle stout loads that the 45-70 cartridge is capable of handling.  My buddy used to mark on the reloads he gave me "Guide Gun only" as he knew I had a Pedersoli knockoff of a rolling block in 45-70 that specified "factory loads only".  Not that the Italians can't make strong guns, it's just that the rolling block action wasn't as strong as the famous Sharps.  I said all this to say that the 450 Marlin is, in my opinion, just a hotter loaded 45-70 in a rimless/belted cartridge so some trapdoor shooter can't jam it into a older gun & risk hurting himself.  Its great for a non-handloader like myself who wants hotter load that he can buy off the shelf.  Actually, it is likely that 450 ammo will be around for a long time plus the components to roll your own seems almost limitless.  But, owning both calibers, I realize now that you can go to just about any store sellin ammo & you'll find 45-70 on the shelf which is a definate advantage.  However, my 22" bbl 450 I guess is a collectable as that model was discontinued in 2004-but for me it's definately a shooter.

[MikeWalking]

Thought several times about buying a 450, but having two 1895's  and an 1894 Cowboy .44mag I thought I had enough lever guns, silly me

The 1894 paid the bills after a sudden layoff, a highly tuned 1895gs went for a down payment on an old jeep.  I still have the 1895 LTD III.  75% of the ammo through the 45-70's has been Buffalo Bores 430gr LFNGC, my go to Alaska-hike the Brooks loads..God bless a recoil pad

[Sideswipe]

Limited Edition Cowboy eh?  Got me go'in now.  26 or 24" bbl?

[Bigshooter]

I'm not surprised.  It doesn't do anything that the 45-70 can't do.

[MikeWalking]

Limited Edition Cowboy eh?  Got me go'in now.  26 or 24" bbl?

The Cowboy was the 1894 .44

The Ltd III 45-70 is an 18.  Full length mag 5+1  bought it with travel in small planes in mind, it was $650 out the door.  They had a 24 for ?? about $1000

Not mine but the same. I have a Pachmayr Whiteline recoil pad, Happy Trigger kit 2.5lbs, best trigger I've ever touched, no slack, take up, over travel... Heavy one piece ejector, heavy mag spring and anodized follower

[Sideswipe]

Very nice.  Got a call from an acquaintance who had a new LTD II in 45-70.  Said it had a 24" oct bbl, straight stock.  I didn't see it & didn't have the $.

[MikeWalking]

The $$ went up with barrel length.  Mine was 1 of 1000.  The II 1 of 500 about a grand I think, didn't see the LTD I in the shop at the time..

[Sideswipe]

Hey Mikewalking,  picked up a LTD IV early this wk.  Looks just like yours 'cept for a 24" bbl.  What little I can find out about it was that 1000 were made & it was made a few years ago at the Marlin plant.  I'm gonna try my best to keep it w/the open sights if my old eyes can handle it-hate to spoil the authentic look....but if I can't hit a bear w/it then it gets scoped (that is when I sell some Jeep rims & tires to pay for this last purchase eh?).  Now to write my old podner in Crescent City to see if he still has that 45-70 reloading equipment-might have some work for him.

[MikeWalking]

Hey Mikewalking,  picked up a LTD IV early this wk.  Looks just like yours 'cept for a 24" bbl.  What little I can find out about it was that 1000 were made & it was made a few years ago at the Marlin plant.  I'm gonna try my best to keep it w/the open sights if my old eyes can handle it-hate to spoil the authentic look....but if I can't hit a bear w/it then it gets scoped (that is when I sell some Jeep rims & tires to pay for this last purchase eh?).  Now to write my old podner in Crescent City to see if he still has that 45-70 reloading equipment-might have some work for him.

From what I remember when I bought mine 2002-2003?  The Limiteds were made exclusively for a distributor named Davidsons.  I carried a fingernail file for mine to shine up that brass bead when needed.  I did put a scope on it for a bit then took it off to use on another rifle.  The only outward change is the recoil pad.

I don't what your trigger is like, but the Happy Trigger Kit from Wild West Guns in Anchorage is Golden.  I wont own a Marlin lever gun with out one. Picture a toggle switch with 2.5-3lbs on it. The one piece Bear Proof ejector is worth the $$ too.  About $125 together.    Soooo  what size tires and jeep rims?? I've got a 2004 Grand Cherokee..and too little $$